


Ends and Means

by newbatgirl



Category: Smallville
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2006-10-02
Updated: 2006-10-02
Packaged: 2017-10-12 08:46:25
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 14,197
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/123060
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/newbatgirl/pseuds/newbatgirl
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>AU. Set ten years into the future, Chloe is an insurance investigator with uncanny instincts and a near perfect record of ferreting out the truth. She is sent to find out if a costly explosion at a client's manufacturing plant was not an accident. The "client" turns out to be a joint venture between Wayne Enterprises and Luthor Corp, whose respective CEOs are less than thrilled to see her. Largely AU since I stopped watching SV regularly early in season 4. Assume the events up to the S3 finale occurred but that Lionel died in prison. The rest of the history will be explained in the story. The inspiration for this came from a number of sources, which I must acknowledge here. The joint venture in robotics between Wayne Enterprises and Luthor Corp. is actually "borrowed" from episodes of Superman: The Animated Series. The rest of the story was loosely inspired by the movie The Thomas Crown Affair. Alfred Pennyworth, Lucius Fox and Jim Gordon are "borrowed" from the comics. The other unfamiliar characters are my own creations. Also, the characterizations were not influenced by the recent Batman Begins movie (but you should see the movie anyway because it's good!) Written in 2006.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Prologue

_Wayne Enterprises Manufacturing Complex, West Gotham City…Building C_

Bruce Wayne adjusted the collar of his custom tailored shirt. A shirt that, given its cost, had no business being uncomfortable at this given moment but still, there it was. True to his reputation, Bruce was normally cool and unflappable in almost any situation. He rarely sweated, seldom paced, and almost never fidgeted.

"You're fidgeting," came a deep voice from his left.

"I am not."

"Yes, you are."

"I don't fidget, Lex," replied Bruce icily, his tone a cue to Lex to drop it.

"Fine, have it your way," replied Lex.

Lex studied the expression on his friend's face for some clue as to what was going on his head. After a few seconds, he conceded to himself that it was useless exercise. Bruce was a master at concealing his thoughts and emotions. While Lex himself was schooled in doing so as well, Bruce's demeanor was unique in how much it differed from his public persona. When out socially or among people he didn't know very well, Bruce was rarely seen without a smile or amused expression on his handsome face. He laughed, joked, and flirted with relaxed ease. Privately, or at least with small groups of people who knew him well, that jovial nature fell away leaving…almost nothing behind.

The private Bruce was quiet, almost solemn. His face was typically devoid of emotion. To an outsider, it would have seemed creepy but of course, outsiders didn't see it. Lex was used to it, so he brushed it off as another of Bruce's quirks. Lord knew that he had enough of those on his own; he didn't need to obsess about Bruce's.

The two men were standing in an alcove off one of the main production floors of a large Wayne Enterprises plant. Just next door, a small army of journalists were awaiting the press conference formally announcing a joint venture of the two corporate giants. Rumors of an alliance between Luthor Corp and Wayne Enterprises had been circulating in the business community for months.

If this press conference went well, the stock prices of both companies would soar by the time the closing bell sounded that very day. Wall Street analysts would be scrambling to figure out the implications of what they learned. Competitors would be scrambling even more to figure out if they stood a chance.

And Lex and Bruce would be holding all the cards. Or so they planned. The problem was, things rarely worked out exactly as people planned them.

The two men had known each other nearly half their lives; they had alternately fought tooth and nail and saved each other's skins from boarding school up through their impressive business careers. They knew each other better than virtually anyone else in the world. However, with these two particular men, that really didn't mean much. There was a lot that each didn't know about the other and that was the way they wanted it. It was probably why the friendship had lasted so long.

Right now they could have even passed for two very expensive bookends, save the absence of hair on one of the men.

Truth be told, there were some other minor differences. They were about the same height, though Lex was of a slightly leaner build. Bruce's bulkier frame was well-concealed in his own custom tailored suit, which was only a shade or two darker in color than Lex's. Both men had pale blue eyes. Lex was completely bald whereas Bruce sported head of wavy dark brown hair that was just tad longer than one might have expected of a CEO.

Through the door, Lex could hear Bruce's second-in-command, Lucius Fox, welcoming the media and getting ready to introduce them. He turned to Bruce.

"Ready for this?"

"Of course. We can the handle the press, Lex. That's not what I'm worried about."

"We've been working on this for a year, Bruce. There's nothing to worry about."

"There's always something to worry about," countered Bruce, setting his jaw.

"Well aren't you the eternal optimist? Where is this coming from?"

Bruce glared at Lex for a beat before responding. "Doesn't matter where, it's still true."

Lex placed one hand on the door handle and one on Bruce's shoulder to get him moving. "Whatever it is, we'll fix it. Later. Right now, we've got a job to do."

Through the door, Lex heard Lucius say their names. His first. He looked at Bruce. "Follow my lead," he said.

There was scattered applause and camera flashes as the two men reached the raised platform facing the crowd. Behind them hung a huge white curtain emblazoned with the Luthor Corp. and Wayne Enterprises logos.

Lex stepped to the podium without hesitation, his earlier discomfort now invisible.

"Good afternoon, Ladies and gentlemen. On behalf of the talented teams from Luthor Corp. and Wayne Enterprises who have worked many long hours to bring us to this point, I thank you for attending. We are proud of what we have to show you and at the risk of sounding immodest, something I am rarely accused of being…"

Lex paused to let the audience snicker at their cue and for more cameras to flash.

"…we have a great deal to be proud of. What this joint venture between Luthor Corp. and Wayne Enterprises is going to do is nothing less than revolutionize the field of robotic engineering."

The curtain raised behind him revealing dozens of gleaming robots in various sizes. They were not robots in the humanoid/popular sci-fi sense of the word, but rather manufacturing machines designed to perform specific tasks.

"Utilizing the latest materials, power sources, and artificial intelligence, our two companies have developed the prototypes you see here. These prototypes are capable of performing hundreds if not thousands of tasks in many different atmospheres and environments, from the extreme pressure in the deep ocean to the unforgiving atmosphere on the surface of Mars…"

Lex paused as the cameras flashed and the crowd strained to get better look at the robots. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see Bruce smiling for the cameras, his earlier stony expression gone.

"…And," continued Lex, "our accomplishments are made all the more satisfying because we can say that they were driven by engineers working at two American corporations, right here on American soil. Make no mistake, the next revolution in robotics beings today, on this side of the Pacific…"

The audience reaction was immediate, the applause nearly deafening as they surged forward even more at Lex words, snapping pictures and shouting questions nonstop.

Satisfied at the response, Lex stole a look at his own friend and wasn't surprised at what he saw. Bruce was still smiling, or course, but his eyes were an icy shade of blue staring straight at him. Lex had deviated from the script, even if it was only slightly. Bruce didn't like it and they both knew why.

* * *

  
 _Meanwhile…a busy downtown café…across town…_

 

Chloe Sullivan took a bite of her sandwich as she scanned through the thick file in front of her. She tuned out the noise around her in the busy café. She sat alone at a table near the window of the café. Around her, the sounds of the midday rush of business people grabbing their lunches before heading back to the office. The café catered to the busy downtown area. In addition to quick, tasty meals, the owners of the cafe had installed several big screen televisions and tuned them to news and finance stations so their customers could stay in touch with the latest stock prices and headlines even while they ate their noontime meal.

Chloe, however, was more interested in the stack of files she had brought with her than the screens. If she had been interested, she would have noticed the fact that the Luthor Corp/Wayne Enterprises press coverage was currently the lead story on CNBC on the screen just above her head. Above the headline which read: "Luthor and Wayne Put Japan on Notice?" There was footage of Lex and Bruce shaking hands and posing for the cameras in front of their machines.

There was a time when Chloe Sullivan might have wanted to be one of the reporters clamoring for quotes from the two business titans but that time was long gone. She had other pursuits these days. Headlines were only of passing interest to her now.

Sitting alone at her table, she looked like any other well-to-do career woman. She was dressed in a charcoal gray pant suit and white blouse. Her blond hair now hung well past her shoulders and framed her face with slightly side swept bangs. On the seat next to her were a simple black briefcase and purse. People who knew Chloe Sullivan at 16 would have never believed that she would dress so simply. For the person she was now and the work that she did, there wasn't room for funky clothes and flashy jewelry. She accepted that.

Not tearing her eyes from the documents in front of her, she took a long sip from her drink only to choke a bit as she felt a hand on her back and a voice in her ear.

"Hey, CJ, why'd you start without me?" said the voice.

Sputtering slightly, Chloe glared at the man who slid into the empty seat at her table.

"Gee, Danny, maybe because you're a grown man who hasn't mastered the art of telling time yet."

Danny, aka Daniel Pena, one of Chloe's coworkers, gave her a carefree grin as he reached over to swipe some of her French fries.

"I'm not that late, calm down. I'm here now, aren't I?"

"You're…" Chloe consulted the thin gold watch in her wrist, "twenty-three minutes late and you're eating my fries. Give me a reason not to kill you."

"You need me?" said Danny loftily, waiving to a waiter. "You can't figure out the financials in whatever case you're working on without my extensive knowledge."

"Oh, get over yourself, you're a CPA, not an astrophysicist. There are plenty more where you came from."

"But I'm your favorite."

"Correction, you're available and easy to boss around, that's why I asked for you," retorted Chloe, pulling her plate of his reach.

"Ah, that's not what my boss told me, he said you requested me because you said that I was your 'favorite assistant investigator' from the department."

Chloe wrinkled her brow making a mental note to go over the definition of "confidential" with the head of Forensic Accounting.

"Fine, so you're my favorite. Don't let it go to your head. Being the least annoying of a group of people who keep copies of the tax code under their beds for light reading is really not that hard. Watch your step, Daniel. Piss me off and I might not request you anymore," she warned with a glint in her eye.

That quieted him. Danny was a little on the cocky side but he knew he was lucky to be working with Chloe Sullivan on any of her cases and aside from some flirting and teasing, he wouldn't want to do anything that might piss her off.

Chloe was a senior investigator at one of the country's top insurance companies, Allied Insurance. Her job was to investigate the loss claims of their clients for signs of fraud or other criminal behavior, or to look for ways to reduce the amount of the loss. Sometimes that meant investigating the client and other times it meant going undercover to recover a lost or stolen item from the black market.

In spite of her relatively short career and young age, Chloe Sullivan was very good at what she did. No one was quite sure just how much money she had saved Allied Insurance since she had started as a junior investigator right out of college but the figure was rumored to be in the hundreds of millions of dollars.

As a result, she had her pick of cases and rarely worked on anything with a potential claim value of less than a million dollars. Chloe generally worked alone, as was her preference, but on cases that required specific expertise, she was given her pick of lower ranked investigators to assist her. And, since Chloe's cases never failed to attract the attention of senior management and the industry at large, there was always competition to work with her.

Danny didn't kiss her ass, though, that's probably why Chloe liked to work with him. He knew how to push her buttons but he didn't push too far.

"So what do you need?" Danny asked, after the waiter took his order.

Chloe tapped the folder she had been looking at before Danny arrived, "Remember that building collapse near the river a few months back?"

"Yeah, I think so. Happened during construction. It was supposed to be a garage or something but the builder rushed the job and by the time they got to the fifth floor, the lower floors weren't stable enough to hold the weight. Whole thing came crashing down. Don't tell me we insured that job?"

"No, thank God. We did, however, insure the building next door. Apartments. At least a dozen tenants are claiming damages amounting to just under $10 million. That's not counting the millions that we've already paid to the agency that owns the building."

"Well, look at the neighborhood, those apartments have to be pretty upscale," Danny pointed out as he finished Chloe's fries. She had long since ceased to care and he had pulled the plate back.

"Some of them, I guess, but most of the tenants have been there for years so they're not paying full market. The agent on the claims didn't feel right about it. She and I worked together before so she sent it to me to see if I could find something and I did."

"What?"

"I read the descriptions of the damages and they're all the same."

Danny did not look convinced. "CJ, I trust your judgment, but claims usually sound the same: water damage, broken furniture, yadda yadda. There are only so many ways things can break. How is that a red flag?"

"I mean, they're really all the same, down to the same language on the claim forms, they used the same adjectives to describe how their belongings were damaged. I have twelve forms here and it seems everyone's floors and walls cracked in exactly the same way, causing specific damage to their belongings. Also, seven of the twelve forms claim damages to 'load bearing walls.' Most people who live in apartments wouldn't know what a load-bearing wall is, let alone know how to identify one. It's not right, Danny. Someone either coached these people or prepared the forms for them. I'm guessing the latter."

"OK, but getting help with the forms isn't really a crime, is it?"

"Not if the damages are real but I don't think these are. There's something else going on here. You don't see this kind of uniformity unless there's a larger scheme in play. Believe me."

Danny chewed thoughtfully for a minute. "So what you need me to do?" he asked finally.

"We start with the company that manages the building. Always start with the common denominator, right? And if that doesn't pan out, we look for another one. I have their financials for the last three years, including the most recent quarter. I need you to comb over these and tell me if you find anything weird. I've going over with our architect to look around and to interview some of the claimants."

Chloe pushed the pile of folders towards Danny and began placing the rest back in her briefcase. In the middle of the process she felt Danny's eyes on her. She looked up, blowing her blond bangs out of her eyes.

"What?"

"I've worked with you on at least a dozen cases over the last year and half and I realize that all I know about you is that you have got really good instincts. Scratch that, really scary instincts. What's your story?"

Chloe averted her eyes from Danny's gaze. "There's not much to know. I got hired, moved up the ranks. As for the instincts, I guess you just get a feel for these things."

"No, that can't be it. You're at least ten years younger than the other investigators at your level, CJ. And, you clear more cases than any two of them put together. How do you do it? How did you even get here?"

How did she get here? How did Smallville's legendary 'girl reporter' end up working for an insurance company of all things? That was a million dollar question.

She looked a Danny for beat, wondering what he would think if she ever told him how much Chloe Jeanine Sullivan, CJ to her current coworkers and friends, had lived before moving to Gotham. How close she had come to dying. And the promises she had made to herself.

They probably wouldn't believe it.

"Does it matter how I got here?" she asked. "I'm here now."

* * *

  
 _Three weeks later…Wayne Enterprises Manufacturing Complex…Security checkpoint_

 

"Time?" asked the young security guard, as he cricked his neck to relieve the weariness.

"Eleven fifty-one. Few more minutes. We have to wait for Abbot and Costello to arrive. Hope they're on time. They were late last night," replied another guard at his side who was slightly older and heavier set. "I don't like getting off shift late just 'cause they drag their feet. Ain't fair."

"You got that right," agreed the first guard.

The two men were standing out side the box-like security booth at the gates of the Wayne Enterprises Manufacturing Complex. The complex was guarded twenty four hours per day with one guard here at the gate and another guard circulating the complex in a small vehicle. There were a total of five buildings in the complex, identified by letters A through E. The two guards on duty on any given time usually took turns circling the complex, if nothing else to stave off boredom.

The two men on duty now, Sanders, the younger and Welman, the older, were both anxious to be relieved of their duties that night. It was a Friday and the weekend beckoned.

The both breathed signs of relief when the second security vehicle pulled up to the booth, with the two guards for the next shift, Peterson and Markofsky, inside.

"Nice of you guys to join us, tonight," called out Sanders.

"Aww, just can it, kid. We're on time tonight. You'll get home in plenty of time to slap the salami and whatever it is guys like you do on a Friday night."

"Kiss my ass, Peterson."

Welmen ignored the exchange as he punched codes on the computer inside the booth to clock him and Sanders out.

"Anything going on?" asked Markofsky as the two new guards stepped out of their vehicle.

"Is there ever?" replied the old guard. He tapped another screen in the booth that showed the views from various security cameras around the property. "Quiet as usual, this time of night. Buildings A and E are the only ones working this shift. Others are locked up tight. If you get a chance, there's a birthday thing in A for the shift foreman. Oughta be some cake left."

Peterson elbowed the portly Markofsky, "You think this guy needs more cake? Any more and he's not fittin' in the booth anymore."

"What kind of cake?" asked Markofsy.

"Chocolate chip pound, I think."

Markofsky opened his car door again. "I think I'll take the first round about, Petey."

"Now there's a shock," grumbled Peterson.

Shaking their heads, Sanders and Welmen stepped towards their own vehicle.

"Have a good night, guys. Try to stay awake," called Welmen.

As he turned away, there was a horrible rumbling from the other end of the complex, followed by a huge thunderous explosion. All four men turned in time to see huge plumes of smoke rise up towards the sky, with raw red and orange flames obscuring the deep blue of the night.

"What the -?"

"That sounds like it's coming from C!"

All four men were frozen in place for several seconds as the smoke clouds billowed in the distance and the fire reached higher and higher in the sky

Finally someone, probably Sanders, broke the silence.

"Which…uh…which one of us is calling that in?"

End Prologue.


	2. Chapter One

_Three weeks later …Allied Insurance Company…Gotham Headquarters…_

"...really unbelievable, CJ. How did you figure this out?" asked Ted Dandridge, Chloe's boss and VP of Investigations at Allied.

Ted was in his early fifties, tall and lanky, with dark hair that was shot with a great deal of gray and silver, and kind, dark brown eyes. He was a veteran investigator who had actually been a cop for ten years before joining the insurance company. He called it his "previous life." They were in his office and Chloe was briefing him on the resolution of her latest case.

"Well, the uniformity on the claim applications was my first clue. Then when I visited the site, I heard rumblings about the management company making upgrades to take the building co-op in a few months."

"Hmm, that's good luck for the tenants, particularly in that neighborhood. A real windfall. If they could afford to buy their apartments outright, that is."

"Exactly, I had Pena from FA look over the financials and as of the last quarter, the management company was covering its expenses pretty well. Nothing fishy but it didn't have nearly the assets it needed to take the building co-op…" continued Chloe as she paced the floor in front of Dandridge's desk. It was always difficult for her to sit still when talking about a case, particularly one she had just cracked.

"…of course, when the building next door collapsed, it really was a windfall to them. The management decided to put the funds we paid them to good use making the necessary upgrades. I checked out the management company's claims and they're all legit. They really did just get lucky on this one. The tenants, on other the hand, are a different story. Turns out, the superintendent got wind of the co-op plan and he convinced some of the tenants that the easiest way for them raise the cash they needed to buy their apartments was to file exaggerated damage claims. He was experienced, so the claims got by the first inspector we sent out. It took a second look with an architect to find the exaggerations."

"These people make good money; you're telling me that their super convinced them to commit large scale insurance fraud?"

"Well, apparently this guy was more than just a super to these people. He was like family. He has worked there for 25 years and most of the tenants have lived there at least ten. He knew everything about them. They told him when they were going on vacation or away on business. He handled everything from deliveries to leaky faucets. They trusted him. It's funny, Ted, I interviewed the guy after we figured it out and, he still doesn't see this as a crime. He's a single guy in his late fifties and this building is actually all he has. The way he sees it, this was just a way for him to keep his family together. The reason the claim applications all sounded alike was because he prepared them. When I talked to the tenants, they said they he made it sound like it was the only way they could afford to stay in their apartments once the building changed over."

"With $10 million of our money?" said Ted, incredulously.

"With $10 million of our money." Chloe sank into a chair opposite Ted. "This job never ceases to amaze me, Ted. Before I started here, I would have said that the reason that people commit insurance fraud is simple: greed."

"And now? What would you say, CJ?"

"Greed's a big one for sure. But take this superintendent. He wasn't going to see a dime of that $10 million yet he orchestrated the whole thing. That's not greed. He did it because he didn't want to be lonely."

"And what does that tell you?" probed Ted, sounding more like a psychologist than a boss.

Chloe grinned. "Well, for one thing it tells me that you can never presume too much in this job. There's always a story, and often there's more than one; if you dig deep enough, you'll find it."

"You're sounding a little like the reporter I used to know," joked Ted.

"What can I say, the skills overlap," Chloe quipped back.

Her boss was one of the few people at Allied who knew what Chloe's first dream had been having done a deep background check on her as soon as she began working for him. He understood why she was there. After what she had experienced in Smallville, Chloe couldn't see herself living the life of a full-time reporter but investigating was in her blood. In doing this job, she could use her extensive skills, but stay out of the spotlight.

So what if her case summaries sometimes read like news stories? That was just who she was.

"Speaking of which…" began Ted as he reached for a pile of folders on his desk, "I have the files for your next case right here, if you want to go over them."

"Jeez, slave driver, much? I just cleared this one."

"And I know these ten minutes of downtime have been killing you!"

Chloe couldn't argue with that. Inactivity did not suit her. Stakeouts were murder on her.

"OK, lay it on me."

"Before I give this to you, let me say that I am aware how this may look to outsiders, but I trust your judgment. Regardless of what other people might say, you're the one I want on this case, Chloe."

It was the "Chloe" that caught her attention, people at Allied rarely called her that. She was 'CJ' there. 'Chloe' and especially 'Chlo' were from another life.

"OK, now I'm concerned. What exactly is going on here?"

"It's just…a case of this magnitude, I can't afford to have another investigator botch it up. The paper pushers upstairs are still dragging their feet on this one but we can't afford that kind of delay. There's too much money involved here. This is my division and it's my call, I'll square it with them later… In the meantime…" Ted seemed to realize that he was rambling and he shrugged. "Here, see for yourself."

Chloe took the pile warily and flipped open the top folder.

She scanned the page and her eyes went wide. "You're kidding, right?"

Ted shook his head. "I know there's history there, but I trust you to stay focused; you can probably make it work for you if you put your mind to it. It's your case."

"You want me to investigate Lex Luthor and Bruce Wayne?"

"I want you to investigate the explosion. If that leads you to Wayne and Luthor, then so be it."

"I can't take this case, Ted. You know I can't take this case," insisted Chloe, placing the folder back on the desk between them.

"It's my call, CJ, and I say it's your case."

"Ted! You know the history; you read my background check. My father worked for Lex Luthor. I testified against his father in federal court, for God's sake. There's no way that anyone will believe that I'm impartial."

"Listen to me, I am aware of how this might look to other people but the bottom line is, if I have to choose between with the possible questions that might arise from you being on this case and it not being solved at all, I'm going to go with the former, every time. The fact is I don't like the stench of this case. Call it a gut feeling, paranoia, whatever but something's happening here, something big. There's no one else that I can count on to go in there and figure out what that is. No one but you."

"Just what do you think is happening here?" asked Chloe, her curiosity getting the better of her.

"That's for you to find out," replied Ted shoving the folder towards her again.

"I don't have a good feeling about this; it could really blow up in our faces."

"No pun intended," smirked the older man.

Chloe shook her head. "Be serious for a minute, please."

"OK, seriously? Seriously, you said that people commit these time of crimes for a lot of different reasons. Well, there are also a lot of reasons that people succeed as investigators. Luck, tenacity, low expectations of human behavior, abundance of cynicism, whatever. You and I succeed for the same reason. We cannot rest until we find out the truth, no matter where it takes us. That's the reason I need you on this case. If I send anyone else in there, they might be intimidated by the power, star-struck, blinded by glare. You, on the other hand, have experience dealing these kind of people. You won't let those things happen. I can feel it."

Chloe bit her lower lip for a second, and then reached for the folder without a word.

"I'm authorizing use of several assistants on this, due to the scope, and to mitigate any concerns anyone might have about your influence, however, as I said, it's your case. Bring it home for me."

"It's my case." Chloe repeated, still not sure who she was trying to convince.

* * *

  
 _Smallville…10 years earlier…_

 

 _Chloe heaved the last bag into the trunk of her car and slammed it shut. It made a very satisfying sound in the quiet spring air. It was early, far too early than Chloe normally woke up but the fact was she really hadn't gone to sleep the night before. Between packing and the series of futile arguments with he father, she had been too wound up to sleep._

 _He said it was too soon, that she should stay and finish her senior year with her friends. Enjoy her youth now and not rush things._

 _She said she was ready to leave now. There was no reason academically to stay longer, she had more than enough credits. She had always been far beyond what the provincial town's school system could provide anyway. There was no use in waiting until June. Her so-called friends would understand. She could get to college a semester early. Get started sooner._

 _Why Gotham, he asked. Her acceptance at Met U was secure. Why move halfway across the country? Away from everyone and everything she knew?_

 _There's your answer, she had said._

 _Gabe had been hurt at that and it had taken some backtracking for her to explain that she hadn't meant him. Everything but him._

 _Now he was looking down at her from the bedroom window as she packed her car. They had their tearful goodbye indoors so there was nothing left for Chloe to do except wave and mimic holding her phone with her hand._

 _The motion caused to her to freeze for a moment as she remembered something. She waited until the bedroom curtain fell closed and her father's eyes were no longer on her before digging into her purse for a small cell phone. It wasn't her regular device, but rather a sleek black model programmed to reach only one other number._

 _Lex had given it to her on her second day of hiding that past summer. It had been her only link to him and the outside world for long, agonizing months._

 _He told her to use it anytime, day or night, and eventually she had. Anytime she felt lonely or scared. He answered attentively each time. They talked about stupid things: B-movie plots, their favorite foods, and music until they felt strong enough to talk about scary things like love, friendship, and death. Neither presumed to know more than the other about such things, they simply traded experiences. They made cynical observations, pointed out the colossal ironies in their respective lives, and joked about chucking it all and becoming idealists._

 _Contrary to what some of Smallville's old matrons thought, Chloe and Lex did not have a passionate sexual relationship that summer. Lex had never even hugged her for more than a few seconds and even then, only if Chloe initiated it._

 _What they had was a passionate friendship…which is why it hurt so much when it ended. And the fact that it didn't so much end, as just fade away made it so much harder to take._

 _Upon her return from the dead, Chloe had held onto the phone, calling Lex occasionally to talk about her adjustment, about his father's illness, and the fact that Smallville never seemed to really change. At first, he answered regularly, and their long conversations continued. Soon though, when Chloe called, the rings went unanswered. He didn't call back. In their fleeting in-person meetings, he gave no explanation, he would briefly acknowledge her presence and move on._

 _For another couple of months, her rings continued to go unanswered and the blue blandness reflected in his eyes when she passed him in the Talon told Chloe all she needed to know._

 _Their friendship, as it was, had run its course. She stopped calling._

 _Now she held the phone in her hand and wondered briefly if she should keep it as some kind of morbid souvenir._

 _The fact that it was trash day on the Sullivans' street decided the matter for her. Twirling it once in her hand, Chloe stepped quickly to the can on the curb and dropped the phone in, slamming the lid down with her other hand. It made a satisfying sound._

 _Slipping on her sunglasses, Chloe got into her car, threw it into gear and proceeded to drive herself out of Smallville._

 _Five months early, alone, and heading in the opposite direction of Metropolis._

* * *

  
 _Wayne Enterprises Headquarters…two days later…_

 

Chloe scowled at her reflection in the polished panels of the elevator doors as it carried her to the top from of the Wayne Enterprises Building. She was alone in the elevator so she used the time to double check her appearance. She was irked with herself for having taken so much extra care with choosing her suit. Outraged that she had tried on three blouses before settling on the emerald green silk shell. Downright furious with herself that she had allowed the thought of how the color might bring out her eyes to even cross her mind.

Chloe's hands literally itched to fuss with her hair just once more be she stubbornly resisted the urge. She wasn't there to ogle the two men or be ogled; she was there to do her job. That job was to find out if someone had deliberately blown up the Wayne Manufacturing Plant three weeks before. She was not there to see how Lex Luthor would react to seeing her again after 10 years. And she certainly wasn't there to see if his presence in a room still raised the temperature by at least 20 degrees. Nope, not at all.

The elevator chimed and Chloe's breath caught in her throat. She had worked with Interpol for God's sake. She had put international criminals in prison. She could do this.

Chloe stepped off the elevator and as her heels clicked loudly on the marble floor, she silently wished that she had worn flatter shoes.

She stepped up to the receptionist and handed the young women the security pass she had been given in the building's lobby.

"CJ Sullivan from Allied Insurance. The guard downstairs should have called to say I was on my way up."

"Yes, Miss Sullivan, you're here to see Mr. Fox?"

"To start with."

The receptionist looked blankly at her for beat before picking up the telephone. She spoke quietly into the phone for reasons Chloe could not fathom given that she was standing right there and could hear everything the woman said anyway.

Bored, Chloe used the time to take a look around the reception area. It was the executive area of a Fortune 500 company, alright. Marble floors. Fresh cut flowers on the expensive mahogany tables. Beautiful framed artwork on the walls, huge plate glass windows to show off the fact that they were 40+ stories above the streets of Gotham. Speaking of which, even Gotham looked good from this height. Go figure.

Behind the receptionist, the words "WAYNE ENTERPRISES" beamed from the wall in polished gold letters.

The typeface and words were certainly familiar. Having lived in Gotham for the better part of ten years now, Chloe was used to seeing Bruce Wayne's name, or rather, the company name, on office buildings, manufacturing plants, and signs all over town. Not unlike how one got used to seeing the Luthor name all over Metropolis.

"Mr. Fox's assistant says you don't have an appointment," said the receptionist loftily, interrupting Chloe's thoughts.

'No shit, you think I would have warned them that I was coming?'

"Mr. Fox doesn't see anyone without an appointment. He's a very busy man."

"I am very happy for him. You can tell 'Mr. Fox's' assistant to tell 'Mr. Fox' that I'm here about their recent claim to Allied Insurance. The claim involving that big building of yours that blew sky-high a few weeks ago? The claim that won't be paid until I talk to him, 'Mr. Wayne' and 'Mr. Luthor.'"

The young receptionist blinked at her.

"I can write that down for you if you want," added Chloe.

The receptionist scowled at her almost imperceptibly and went back to whispering into the telephone.

She raised her head again, "Mr. Fox will be out in a moment."

Chloe rolled her eyes. "Super." God, she hated receptionists who thought they were the Gestapo.

Within minutes, one of the mahogany doors burst open and a slim, dark-skinned man in his late forties can rushing out, still straightening his tie.

"Miss…Sullivan was it? Lucius Fox, Senior Vice President of Wayne Enterprises. Sorry about the confusion." He extended his hand and Chloe shook it firmly. "Had we known you were coming..."

"Kind of the defeats the purpose of the 'surprise visit.' C.J. Sullivan, Senior Investigator for Allied."

Lucius laughed nervously at the quip. "Of course, why don't we talk in my office?"

She followed him through several sets of doors to his office and accepted his silent invitation to sit down across from his large desk.

"What can I do for you today, Miss Sullivan? I hope there wasn't anything wrong with the claim forms. I worked on those personally, with assistance from our in-house counsel. We made sure to cross the t's and dot the i's."

"The forms were fine, Mr. Fox, but surely you realize that someone from Allied would be here even if your claim had been engraved on stone tablets. We're not in the habit of handing over $200 million payouts without doing a little investigating first."

Lucius looked perplexed for a moment before answering. "Of course, um, what can I help you with?"

"Everything."

"Pardon?"

"Pursuant to the terms of the agreement you signed when you bought the policy, if you want to collect your claim, you have to give us, more precisely, me, access to the records of all of your operations so we can be sure that there were no illegal activities that directly or indirectly led to the loss."

"And by 'access to our records' you mean…?"

"Paper files, computer files, whatever was salvaged from the accident site…. sorry 'alleged' accident site. Access to computer networks including archived files, emails, any financial records relating to the joint venture plus financial records for the two companies for the past three years…" Chloe realized that Lucius was just staring at her. "Do you need to write any of this down?"

"I think I need to get our attorneys up here."

"That works too," Chloe answered cheerily. She loved this part.

 _Wayne Enterprises Headquarters…Bruce Wayne's office…_

"Bruce, for the last time, you cannot blow off this meeting!" spat Lex, the muscles in his jaw twitching madly.

"Watch me." Bruce replied, slipping back into his suit coat. The phone on his desk began to buzz but he ignored it.

"Goddammit, Bruce. This is damage control and we have to do it! This PR consultant has a plan that both of our companies need to put in play if we're going to survive this."

"You can go play spin doctor with your consultant all you want. I have a company to run."

Lex tossed the copies of the PR plan that he had been holding onto Bruce's expansive desk.

"Really? It seems to me that if you and your people had been doing that properly in the first place, we wouldn't be here..."

A knock on the door interrupted their 'discussion' which by now had gotten quite loud.

"Not now!" shouted Bruce. He turned his attention back to Lex. "No way, you aren't going to try to blame this mess on me again. We both know how we got here. If you had stayed focused on getting this done instead of acting like you were trying to get elected…"

"Stop being ridiculous."

"Ridiculous? I was there, Lex! The only things missing were the American flags and a campaign bus. You want to run for office, you do it on your own dime, not on mine. Between that and your secret deals…"

"You are the last person on earth allowed to talk to me about secrets, Bruce…"

"What the fuck is that supposed to mean?"

The knocking at the door grew more insistent and Bruce placed his palm against his forehead as he yelled at the door again. "Still not now!"

"Mr. Wayne, Mr. Fox is here to see you and he says it's urgent!" came the frazzled voice of Bruce's executive assistant.

Bruce exhaled. "Fine, send him in."

Lucius opened the door, looking somewhat guilty for interrupting. Lex eyed the man and decided that he had probably heard every word of their 'discussion.'

"What is it, Lucius?"

"Sorry to interrupt but something's come up. There's an investigator from Allied Insurance here about…the claim. They say they have a right to see all records of our operations before they'll approve payment. And they do mean everything, Bruce."

"That's ridiculous. There must be some mistake. Did you run it by…"

"I ran it by legal, sir. It's in the policy we signed. They have a right to see it all, including all Luthor Corp. records relating to the joint venture," replied Lucius, shooting a look at Lex.

"You're joking, right?"

"Look for yourself," Lucius handed Lex a thick document, "circled area, page five."

Lex's eyes flew over the page. "What the hell…?" His face went pale and his eyes flew to Bruce's. "This can't be right. This has to be a mistake."

Bruce grabbed the documents from Lex and scanned them himself. "It doesn't look like it."

"This doesn't make any sense…this investigator, where did you say he was?" demanded Lex.

"She. She's in my office. What should I do?"

Bruce looked stone-faced for a moment and Lex ran his hand over his head.

"Sir?" pressed Lucius. "She's been in my office for over thirty minutes now…"

"I don't know. Just get back there and…"

"Get back there and what?" asked a clear female voice from the doorway. "Stall her? I think the ship has sailed on that option, gentlemen."

All three men turned to see Chloe standing in the doorway, one hand on the door frame.

Lex froze and time seemed to stand still for him. "Chloe?" The word came out like a whisper but not so low that Bruce didn't catch it.

She had a sort of half-smile on her face. She was dressed in a very elegant-looking suit, and a green blouse, not at all the way he remembered her. In his memories she was always wearing jeans and some kind of funky patterned shirt. Her hair was longer than he remembered. Her eyes looked very wide and green as they swept over him to Bruce and back to him again.

Then it seemed like everything happened at once.

"Miss Sullivan! I thought…I thought you were waiting in my office!" said Lucius, crossing the room in three long strides to stand between Chloe and the two other men.

At the same time, Lucius' assistant, a gray-haired women who looked like the very definition of a school marm, came running up behind Chloe.

"Oh, there you are, Miss! Mr. Fox, I am so very sorry, she said she was looking for the ladies room. Then she got away from me." She shot Chloe a reproving glance.

Chloe shrugged at Lucius. "Must have took a wrong turn."

Lucius looked back at his boss and realized that there was no way around introductions at this point, at least not with looking like they were trying to hide something. Or even more like they were trying to hide something. "It's OK, Nora. I'll handle it." The woman hurried away.

"Bruce Wayne, Lex Luthor, this is the investigator from Allied Insurance that I mentioned. Miss Sullivan. As I said, Miss Sullivan is here to investigate the explosion at the plant so that Allied can authorize payment," said Lucius. "A formality, I'm sure," he added optimistically, as if saying the words made it so.

"I do this for living, Mr. Fox, and I'm very good at it. I'd prefer you not characterize it as 'a formality,'" Chloe responded, as she stepped forward and extended her hand to Bruce first. "Nice to meet with you, Mr. Wayne." Bruce only nodded as he shook her hand; he was still irked that this woman had all but barged into his office and overheard what he had said about 'stalling her.' Plus, he was more than a little curious as to why Lex had acted like he had seen a ghost for a few seconds there.

He watched intently as Chloe relinquished his hand and extended her hand to Lex. Lex visibly hesitated for a second before taking it.

"Mr. Luthor."

"Miss Sullivan."

Bruce observed that they both held the contact a bit longer than necessary, almost as if they were daring the other to let go first. Lucius' voice interrupting them made it a draw, however.

"Well, Miss Sullivan, why don't we go back to my office…"

"No, not quite yet. I need to say something first," Chloe said looking each man in the eye. "And, what I have to say is for all of you to hear. I realize that the thought of my company going through your operations records is a bit…distasteful right now but it's going to happen. Allied Insurance needs to know what happened to your plant. If it truly was an accident, then you have absolutely nothing to worry about. " She placed her hands on her hips. "However, if it wasn't an accident, we will find the parties responsible. And just so there's no confusion, our definition of 'the parties responsible' generally includes those whose names are on the dotted line at the bottom of the policy. In this case, that would be…" She reached for the policy in Bruce's hand and read the last page "… Bruce T. Wayne and Alexander J. Luthor. Imagine that."

Chloe looked up, smiling brightly. "So it looks like you guys are stuck with me for the foreseeable future. Cooperate and this will be pretty painless. I will warn you, though, 'stalling' me just makes me irritable and then nobody has any fun."

"What if we just decide to withdraw the claim?" asked Bruce. At Chloe's raised eyebrows, he continued, "You're asking for access to the operations records of two very large corporations, Miss Sullivan. There might be sensitive…competitive data that we may not want to share. All legal, of course, just proprietary. Surely you understand."

"Mr. Wayne, I'm here to find out if someone's trying to cheat my company out of $200 million. I don't give a rat's ass who you buy your widgets from and what you resell them for…unless it has something to do with why that building blew up."

"Of course," she continued, "if you want to withdraw your claim, that's your choice but then two things will happen. One, you'll both have the eat the costs for the manufacturing plant, which you insured for $200 million but we all know was much more valuable in terms of research and development, future values, etc. And two, in doing so, your actions will be considered, according to the terms of our policy, a Questionable Circumstances Violation of said policy and you will owe us a Questionable Circumstances Termination Fee equal to no less than 10 of the claim amount."

"What?" exclaimed Bruce.

"That's $20 million!" said Lex.

"You did that all in your head? I'm impressed," Chloe replied dryly and smiled faintly when Lex glared at her.

Lucius shook his head. "That's impossible, you cannot make us pay you $20 million just to get out of an insurance policy."

"Your lawyers didn't circle that entire paragraph, did they? That QCT fee is our way of making sure people understand that once they're in on something illegal, they're in all the way. When it comes to insurance fraud, we don't think there's such a thing as 'just a little bit guilty.' If you don't like the fee, I suggest you take it up with your senator. QCT fees were made legal by the legislature eight years ago. Oh, and one more thing, all QCTs become matters of public record. Your business partners, clients, customers, and the press will all find out about it. And draw their own conclusions as to why you would pay it."

Bruce, Lex and Lucius exchanged looks. "I can't believe this," muttered Bruce.

"And I can't believe how many people still don't read the fine print," said Chloe, leaning against Bruce's desk. All three men frowned at her. "The devil is in the details, after all. So…" she looked around the enormous office. "Mr. Wayne? Care to show me where I'll be working for the next few weeks?"

End chapter.


	3. Chapter Two

_It had been Lana who told Lex that Chloe had left town to start college early. And she had done it days after she left. Lex was momentarily angry to be so far disconnected from Chloe that it would take so long for him to find out but he realized quickly that it could not be helped. Gabe rarely discussed her with him even though he was back working at the plant. His relationship with Clark was non-existent. That left only Lana to tell him, who mentioned it in passing as she talked about something else. When he stopped her, Lana seemed startled, as if she was surprised that Lex would be concerned with what Chloe was doing while she was in the middle of a story._

 _Unfortunately Lana did not know much, all she seemed to know was that Chloe had requested her diploma from Smallville High and that she had left town to start college early. Lana presumed that she was staying in Metropolis, either at the University or with her aunt and cousins._

 _Two days later, Lex climbed the stone steps of Metropolis U's main administration building with an inexplicable sense of giddiness. He didn't try to plan what he would say to Chloe when he found her, he knew he just wanted to explain his behavior, to make sure that she had come to the right conclusion about his aloofness. He had faith in her intelligence but he also knew that sometimes her self-esteem issues got the better of her. Away from Smallville, away from the prying eyes, he could smooth things over, if need be, Lex was sure of it._

 _It took several minutes for Lex to convince the registrar to give him information about Chloe. Some nonsense about privacy laws. When the man finally acquiesced, Lex wasn't prepared for the answer. He expected to find Chloe halfway across campus, already plotting her way onto the executive staff of the school paper. He didn't expect that she wouldn't be there at all. Not on campus, not in Metropolis at all._

 _It didn't take long to find out where she was, but the message was clear, Chloe had moved on and she wanted to be left alone._

* * *

 _Wayne Enterprises Headquarters…executive conference room…later that day_

 "…and I'll need copies of all financial transactions made by the in the name of LW Technologies, your joint venture, as well as transactions made by each of your corporations into the venture and from any the each corporation' SPE's," said Chloe, checking off another item on the list in her hand.

She was pacing the length of the table, she always thought better on her feet, while Lex, Bruce, Lucius, Bruce's assistant and one of Wayne Enterprises' attorneys were seated at the table.

Bruce narrowed his eyes at Chloe from his seat at the conference table.

"You seem to know a quite a bit about corporate accounting. However, our financial statements are quite complex. Are you sure that you won't need one of our accountants to walk you through those documents, Miss Sullivan?"

Chloe knew thinly veiled condescension when she heard it but she kept her cool. She turned and smiled at Bruce.

"I do know quite a bit, Mr. Wayne. And anything I don't know, I'll be going over with my own forensic accountant, if it's all the same to you. In these matters I find it's always better to BYO."

Bruce's face returned to the stony visage he had been showing ever since Chloe appeared in his office and if he wasn't upset in his own right, Lex would have found it pretty funny. The idea of Chloe Sullivan walking all over Bruce Wayne would have typically been priceless to Lex had she not been walking all over him for the last hour as well.

True, she had not spoken directly to him since she shook his hand, but her general comments, demeanor, and even the way she kept raising her eyebrows whenever he or Bruce made seemed explicitly designed to tell them, specifically him, that she was in charge.

Or maybe he was just projecting.

As she spoke, Lex tried to recall how their relationship, such that it was, had left off ten years earlier. They hadn't fought or had a falling out after she left his protective custody. The deep friendship they had developed over that infamous summer just seemed to dissolve, wither away from inattention. Though Lex knew the reasons why he had let it happen, he could never be sure that Chloe did. Lex had briefly considered contacting her in Gotham but had been filled with the unfamiliar feeling of foolish uncertainty at the thought. What would he say to her after not speaking to her for six months in Smallville. 'How've you been?' 'Sorry about the cold shoulder routine, is that a new haircut?' Yeah, right.

The months turned into years and urge to hire someone to find her faded as well, though, truth be told, he had often wondered where she was. Every once in a while when he opened a newspaper, Lex half expected to see her name in a byline. He never did, and now he knew why. Chloe Sullivan, investigative journalist, had found a different calling.

She was talking to him now.

"Mr. Luthor? Did you hear what I said?"

"No, can you repeat that?" he said, feeling somewhat embarrassed at being caught unaware.

"I said, you should call your Gotham office of Luthor Corp. and tell them to expect one of our accountants first thing tomorrow morning. And one of our computer specialists, as well.

Chloe checked another item off her list and Lex was alternately aggravated at the way she spoke to him and somewhat hurt by her distant behavior. And the fact that it hurt him was aggravating him all the more.

"Will that be all, Miss Sullivan?" asked Lucius, when neither Lex nor Bruce made any attempt to speak.

"I think so, no wait…there is one thing I have to say. Kind of a standard caveat. As I said my computer specialists and assistants are on their way but it will certainly take us the rest of the day to get ourselves up and running. In the meantime, and through the course of the investigation, I'll warn you not to destroy any paper or digital documents, transfer files, or otherwise attempt to remove materials from the various premises that might be probative." One corner of her mouth curled up. "We can always tell when you do that, and aside from being a felony, it  _really_  pisses us off."

Bruce's assistant snickered into her hand and tried to cover it up with cough.

Bruce looked like he was at the end of his rope, at least to Lex, who was the only one in the room who knew the signs.

"Miss Sullivan, I assure you, we intend to cooperate fully with this investigation. No one here intends to destroy evidence," Bruce said icily.

Chloe's eyes went wide. "Oh, of course you wouldn't, but I have to say it. Kind of like when they ask you if you want fries with that. Part of the routine, you know? That's all I have. For now. I'm sure we'll all be talking again very soon."

Lucius rubbed at his temples, apparently weary of trying to keep up with Chloe Sullivan's turns of phrase.

"Miss Sullivan, if you'll excuse us, I'll go make sure that the temporary offices you requested are ready," he said, rising from the table. Lucius, the assistant and the lawyer soon exited.

Bruce rose from the table as well and waited as Lex did the same. "Miss Sullivan, my apologies for the earlier comment about 'stalling you.' I had clearly underestimated you. I trust you won't hold a thoughtless comment like that against the company during your investigation."

"Wouldn't dream of it."

"Lex and I have some things to discuss, if you'll excuse us. I'm sure Lucius will be back soon to show you to your office so you should probably stay _here_  until then." Bruce's less-than-subtle emphasis on the word 'here' was almost enough to make Lex laugh. The man didn't really think he could stop Chloe Sullivan from snooping around if she really wanted to, did he? Of course, Bruce really didn't know who he was dealing with.

"Perhaps you'd like something while you wait?" interjected Lex. "Coffee, maybe?"

When Chloe shifted her vaguely amused gaze from Bruce to him, Lex felt uncharacteristically foolish, as if she were laughing at him for some reason.

"Coffee? Now there's an idea. Never could turn down a good cup of coffee. Thank you. I'll just be checking in with my office in the meantime; there's no need to babysit me."

They watched as she sank into one of the chairs and pulled her cell phone out of bag.

Both men got the distinct feeling that they had been dismissed and they eventually backed out of the room into the hallway.

For the second time in as many hours, Bruce exhaled heavily. "Well, that was…I don't know what that was, actually."

"I hear you. That was certainly unexpected," replied Lex, still looking at Chloe through the open door as she punched numbers on her telephone.

Lex felt Bruce's eyes on him and he knew that Bruce wanted to ask him something, probably something about his reaction to Chloe's appearance. He was going to have to explain that sooner or later.

"Well, what do you suggest we do?" Bruce asked finally.

"To start? Get her a cup of coffee. I'm not sure we want to see what happens if we don't."

* * *

 _A short while later…_

 

Chloe looked out the window of the conference room with her back to the door as she waited for her call to connect.

"Ted? It's CJ. Got your message. Everything's going as expected. Some of the usual bull to start but I think they know the deal now….uh-huh…yeah, it was…. Anyway, I just left a message for IT to send me two bodies, one for here and one for the Luthor Corp. building. I'm also going to need FA to send me some number crunchers. Again, one for here to work with me and one for Luthor Corp…. Yeah, they know they're coming….For me? Send me Peña, only don't tell him I asked for him. You got that?" she laughed into the phone. "I'm serious, I'll never hear the end of it…OK, thanks…you too. Bye." Chloe snapped her phone shut and turned from the window only to come face to face, or rather, face to chest with Lex.

"Christ!" she exclaimed, taking a step back and grabbing the window frame to steady herself. "Don't do that! You nearly gave me a heart attack."

A grin spread slowly across Lex's face. He had finally caught her off guard.

"Did I frighten you?" he asked silkily.

"No…more like surprised. I wasn't expecting to see you there," countered Chloe.

"Well then we're even. This is the last place I expected to see you."

"Really? Where was the first place?" she asked, dropping her hand from the window frame and stepping a little closer.

It was the closest she had been to him all day and he realized she was wearing some kind of scent; not perfume. Body wash? Lotion maybe? The scent hit him and he was confused again.

"What?"

"You said that this was the last place you expected to see me. What was the first place? After ten years, Lex, where would you expect to see me?"

"In my morning paper actually," Lex answered honestly.

Chloe gave a little eye roll and stepped around him. "I left that dream behind a long time ago."

"Why?"

"I had my reasons."

It was clear that he wasn't going to get anything else out of her on that score so Lex tried another tack.

"CJ?" he asked.

Chloe rolled her eyes as she tossed her phone in her bag. "Listening in on my call? Why I am not surprised? It's a nickname, for friends and colleagues, at least."

"Interesting. What should I call you?"

"Miss Sullivan still works. That was always a favorite of yours."

Lex grinned faintly, despite the dig. "Your sense of humor hasn't changed. You look great, by the way; those ten years have been very kind to you."

"I could say the same to you, except now that you've said it, it would seem insincere, don't you think?"

"No one could ever accuse you of being insincere, Chloe. You always say exactly what's on your mind."

"I can't argue with you on that. In fact, I'll tell you what's on my mind right now. If you're trying to figure out if I have some angle, some sort of ulterior motive in being here, you're wrong. This case came up and my boss gave it to me. End of story."

Lex pressed his lips together. She was keeping her distance, emotionally at least. Her tone was like ice.

"What makes you think I was thinking that?"

"Why else would you be in here? What else do we have to say to each other?"

Before Lex could answer, Lucius returned to the room.

"Miss Sullivan, we have an office ready for…Oh, Lex, I didn't realize you were in here. I'm not interrupting?"

"No, you're not," Chloe replied quickly, picking up her purse and briefcase. "I'd like to see that office, please."

Lucius' eyes flicked from Chloe to Lex for a beat before he gestured for Chloe to follow him.

"Of course, right this way." Lucius led Chloe out the room and down the hallway to the left.

Lex let out a frustrated breath and turned to face the window. He didn't notice Bruce enter the doorway from the right. He watched Lex at the window for a minute before continuing down the hall.

* * *

 _Text of email…_

  _We have a problem. Allied Insurance investigating the explosion. The investigation cannot be allowed to proceed._

 _Advise ASAP._

End Chapter.


	4. Chapter Three

_Later that night…much later…_

Gloved fingers flew over the keys of the large control panel, typing out a search:

 **SULLIVAN, CHLOE J**

 **FEMALE**

He added some more details, including Chloe's approximate age and other vitals and let the computer's intricate databases do the rest. The results of the search appeared in one flat screen monitor and as the user entered another search.

 **LUTHOR, ALEXANDER J**

 **MALE**

When the results appeared seconds later, the user entered another command:  **FIND MATCHES**.

Before the user could view the results on the third screen, the rapid movements of a feather duster across the console obscured his view.

"Alfred!" he growled in his trademark gravely voice. "Do you mind?"

"Not at all, sir, but thank you for your concern." Came the clipped reply from the wielder of the feather duster, an elegant man with silver hair and British accent.

"I meant, I can't see the screens when you do…that. I'm working now. Can't you do that some other time?"

"If you can name a time when you  _won't_  be working, sir, I'd be happy to come back then. But since Nostradamus himself couldn't possibly predict such an occurrence, I have to choose my opportunities when I can."

The Batman, as he was popularly known, frowned and grumbled low in this throat.

"Just…clean something else until I finish this search," he said, turning back to his massive console.

"I wish I could, sir, but I'm all caught up down here," replied Alfred, gesturing around the Batcave. "I've even catalogued your supplies for you: things you swing from, things that explode, and things that incapacitate evildoers. Those last two took quite awhile, though. You wouldn't believe how often things overlap in those areas."

"Alfred…"

The manservant ignored the warning tone in his employer's voice, a tone that had caused many a criminal to lose control over their excretory functions. Instead he peered over Batman's shoulder at the image on the first monitor.

"What a lovely woman. Please tell me she is not our city's newest megalomaniacal evil villain. Sorry, villian _ess_.

"Her name is Chloe Sullivan. She's an investigator from Allied Insurance looking into the explosion at the LW Technologies plant."

"I see, and why are you investigating her?"

Batman glared at him through the lenses of his cowl. "I like to know whom I'm dealing with," he answered pushing back his cowl to reveal the handsome, yet expressionless features of Bruce Wayne.

"And her connection to Mr. Luthor?"

"That's what I'm trying to figure out. Lex knew who she was when she walked into the room today and she knew him. I could tell from how they interacted. There's clearly some kind of history there."

"There's always the direct approach, you could just ask him."

"Oh, I plan to, Alfred, but I don't like asking questions I don't already know the answer to."

Bruce pulled the winged gloves off his large hands and punched some more keys on his console.

"This is interesting…Chloe J. Sullivan, listed as a dependent of one of Luthor Corp.'s employees, Gabriel Sullivan…until about eleven years ago. He was apparently the plant manager at a facility in…Smallville?"

"Interesting name for a town. And they say we Brits are eccentric," murmured Alfred.

"Gabriel Sullivan was terminated then, no explanation given…The next time there's any connection between the two of them is when Lionel Luthor was tried in federal court ten years ago. Apparently, Ms. Sullivan was a star witness."

"That's quite a connection, indeed. What happened?"

Bruce tapped more keys. "Shortly before her testimony, Miss Sullivan and her father were killed in an explosion while being transferred to an FBI safe house. According to the same news article, Lex was hospitalized for an attempted poisoning around the same time. "

"Killed? Didn't you just say you met her today?"

"Yes, and as the saying goes, she looked pretty good for a dead woman. Here it is…She and her father resurfaced three months later, alive and well, again in this Smallville place."

"No explanation given? They're just dead one day, alive the next?"

"The implication is that they were hiding out from Lionel Luthor, but no one seems to know where or how."

Bruce tapped some more keys. "Damn, that's the last connection. It seems Chloe Sullivan left Smallville and moved here right after high school. She's been here in Gotham or overseas working for Allied ever since graduating from Gotham U. No further connections to the Luthors, at least not that I can find here."

"So what does that tell you, sir?"

"Not enough," replied Bruce. "But it's a start." He leaned forward again and entered another command:

 **SHOW ALL IMAGES**

A single image popped up on the search window. It was a picture taken by one of the press at the Metropolis Courthouse during Lionel's trial. It showed a younger Chloe Sullivan and Lex Luthor standing very close to one another. Lex's hand was at her back and the two appeared to be in deep discussion. The Chloe in the picture looked young and anxious, very unlike the woman Bruce had met that day. She was beautiful, though, even back then.

But instead of wondering what they had been discussing, Bruce was looking at the expression on his old friend's face.

"This, on the other hand," said Bruce, tapping the screen, "tells me quite a lot, Alfred."

* * *

  
 _The next day…Wayne Enterprises Building…_

It was already mid morning when Lex Luthor crossed the lobby of the Wayne Enterprises building, heading towards the elevator. He already had a fierce headache and wanted nothing more than to be left alone as long as possible.

"Lex, hold the elevator!"

So much for that.

Bruce was the last person he wanted to deal with right now. Well, maybe not the last but near the bottom of the list to be sure. Still, Lex leaned on the 'door open' button to wait for his friend.

Walking leisurely and looking ridiculously rested, Bruce ambled over to the elevator, briefcase in hand. Lex wasn't surprised by this. Bruce rarely made it to the office before ten. To those who hadn't worked closely with him, he gave off the air of a 'hands off' CEO, content to be the public face of the company but let others make the decisions.

Nothing could be further from the truth. Lex knew that behind Bruce's public face as a carefree playboy who just happened to share the name with a Fortune 500 company, was a shrewd, calculating mind.

Lex didn't question the dichotomy in his friend; he surmised that Bruce's reasons for it were partly business and party personal. Lex himself knew the value of not keeping part of yourself hidden from the world so he played along and didn't question it. Bruce had certainly extended him the same courtesy when necessary.

Lex rolled his eyes, though, as Bruce stepped up beside him in the elevator. He let the doors close before addressing him.

"Just getting in?" he asked with a slight air of condescension.

Bruce shrugged. "Had a late date last night; kind of spilled over into the morning."

Lex resisted the urge to roll his eyes again. He had no desire to hear about Bruce's sexual conquests.

"I've already been to my Gotham offices. The accountant from Allied was there when I got there, tearing the place apart. You can't even imagine." He almost shuddered at the memory. The accountant Chloe had sent to Luthor Corp was a humorless woman in her fifties with a tobacco-hardened voice and a quick temper. He had never seen his staff move so quickly before, not even when he lost his temper with them.

"I guess we'll see more of the same when we get upstairs," said Bruce evenly.

"You don't seem all that concerned about this. Aren't you worried about this at all?"

"Of course I am but I'm not about to get caught off guard again like we did yesterday."

The elevator stopped at one of the lower floors and an attractive brunette stepped on, flashing smiles at both Lex and Bruce. Lex barely acknowledged her but he had to endure a few minutes of watching Bruce flirt shamelessly with the woman before she stepped off again on the 28th floor.

"You were saying?" Lex said pointedly.

"Hmmmm? Oh, yeah...we can't allow her to catch us off guard again. She may have won the first round, but this isn't over."

There was need to ask who the 'she' was that Bruce was referring to.

The elevator chimed as it reached the top floor of the building and Lex immediately stepped off and headed towards the office that he had been using for the past year as he and Bruce put together their venture.

Much to his annoyance, instead of heading to his own office, Bruce followed him past the reception area and down the quiet hallway.

"By the way, I've been meaning to ask you…"

'And here it comes…'

Lex stopped but didn't turn.

"…our new friend the insurance investigator, where did you two meet?" Bruce inquired.

It was on the tip of Lex's tongue to deny knowing her but he sensed that would be futile and then Bruce made that much obvious.

"I couldn't help but notice that you knew her name was 'Chloe' when both she and Lucius had only revealed her last name. So I surmised that you must have known her from somewhere else."

Lex turned. "Nothing gets past you Bruce," he said sarcastically. "Miss Sullivan's father once worked for Luthor Corp, ran one of our plants, in fact. He worked at the plant in Smallville, outside Metropolis, when I lived there a few years back. That's how I know her."

"Do you know  _all_  of your employees' children, Lex? Or just the ones who are built like her?"

"No, I don't, but you seemed to have missed the name of the town.  _Small_ ville. As in everybody knows each other. She might have been a friend of people I knew in the town, that kind of thing. And to answer the next obvious question, no we didn't. It wasn't that kind of relationship."

"What kind of relationship was it?" Bruce pressed.

Lex was trying hard not to show his annoyance with the conversation. He knew he had to appear disinterested or Bruce would never let up. "One that's completely irrelevant to the matters at hand. Now if you don't mind, I have a conference call with our suppliers. They'd like me to explain when they're going to receive payment for components that no longer exist."

"That's precisely why you should answer my questions. You know what's at stake here, Lex. Now, during the course of this 'irrelevant' acquaintance with Miss Sullivan, do you recall anything about her that might give us some insight as to what we're up against here?"

Lex's memory flashed to an intense conversation he had with a teenage Chloe Sullivan, over a dead body no less. It was his first glimpse of her tenacity, but not his last. The room had nearly crackled with the heat of her determination, and perhaps something else…

"Lex?"

Lex snapped back to the present and paused before answering. "I know this: Chloe Sullivan has a knack for finding information that no one wants found."

Bruce didn't seem to be too happy with that response.

* * *

  
 _Wayne Enterprises Manufacturing Complex, area formerly known as Building C, later that day_

Notebook in hand, Chloe made her way around the throng of workers and demotion vehicles gathered outside what had been Building C of the Wayne Manufacturing Complex. After only a few minutes there she was glad she had anticipated the condition of the scene and dressed accordingly: khakis, work boots, and a windbreaker with the Allied Insurance logo on the left front side. She had pulled her hair back into a ponytail. Shortly after she arrived, someone handed her a hard hat. Chloe was glad she wouldn't have to navigate the wet, uneven floor of the building's ruins in three-inch heels and a tight skirt.

After roaming the perimeter for a few minutes, dodging workers hauling debris she finally spotted the man had come to talk to.

"Mr. Thomas Liu? CJ Sullivan from Allied Insurance. My office called and said I was coming." She said, hurrying over the man. He was older, in his fifties, with silver lined black hair and glasses. She extended her hand and the man took it, firmly. Chloe's father had always told her that you could tell a lot about a man from his handshake. At the time, Chloe had brushed it off as one of Gabe's quaint ideas about the world but her years of meeting people and needing to assess them quickly had taught her otherwise. Gabe knew an awful lot when it came right down to it.

"Afternoon, Ms. Sullivan. I did get that message. I was kind of surprised to get it though."

Peering at the man, Chloe decided that Mr. Lui reminded her a lot of her father. The parallels were there. Chloe had, of course, researched the man beforehand and found that he was an eighteen-year employee of Wayne Enterprises. He had been hand-picked by Lucius Fox, Bruce's second in command, to head up the LW Tech plant. He had an impressive education, complete with advanced engineering degrees and certifications. By all accounts, he was loyal, hardworking, and honest. A lifer at Wayne Tech, a company man, just like Gabe.

Filing away that knowledge, Chloe focused on the questions she needed to ask.

"Why did it surprise you, Mr. Lui?"

"Well, it seemed pretty cut and dry. The explosion was an accident. The GCFD signed off on it, I'm not sure what else I can say that can help your investigation."

"You'd be surprised, sir. Sometimes even a minor detail can help in case like this."

Mr. Lui shrugged, "I guess, well, I'll tell you what I know. It's already in the arson report anyway."

"I read that report, thanks. I'm interested in a few items that are outside the scope of that report."

Mr. Lui looked around, apparently looking for someplace where they could talk, away from the hustle of the clean-up crews.

"I wish I could show you to my office but, as you can see, there isn't too much left. Why don't you follow me, we could at least find something for you to lean on, miss."

Chloe resisted the urge to roll her eyes. In anyone else she might look at this as a stalling tactic, but Mr. Lui's demeanor suggested that he was simply trying to be polite and his old-fashioned manners would not allow a female to be uncomfortable in his presence for very long.

She followed him to an area where makeshift benches comprised of partially damaged sheet rock had been set up as a break area for the crew. Mr. Lui motioned for her to sit down and then sat across from her.

"What did you want to ask?"

"Well, to start, I'd like your assessment of the cause of the explosion. The GCFD attributed it to a malfunction in the systems that regulated the climate-controlled zones in the plant. Do you agree with that?"

"There was a complex system in place for climate control, yes. We're not just talking about your basic HVAC. In order to test the durability and performance of our robots in extreme environments, we had to try to simulate those environments here in the plant. For example, Zone 4 was designed to mimic the temperatures in the Arctic. Zone 5 simulated the extreme pressure under the deep Pacific."

"It must have taken a lot of power to provide that degree of simulation," mused Chloe.

"It sure did. The entire subbasement level of the plant housed the computers and generators used in the climate simulations."

"So somewhere among those systems, something went wrong with the climate simulators, leading to the explosion."

"The GCFD says that's the most likely cause."

"And what do you think, Mr. Lui?"

The man looked startled for a minute. "What does it matter what I think? The report…"

"The report was written by people who don't understand your systems, who came in here for about a week and poked around unfamiliar equipment, most of it damaged beyond recognition anyway. As much as I respect the arson squad, it's been my experience that when they use language like the kind used in this report, it means that they aren't 100 sure of anything. You ran this plant, Mr. Lui. Tell me what your gut says."

"I really don't think it's my place to question…"

"No, actually it's  _my_ place to question it and  _I'm_ asking you," Chloe snapped back. Then she relaxed, remembering that Mr. Lui would probably not respond well to that. "Sir, you're not doing Wayne Enterprises any good by staying silent. It's in the best interest of the company to cooperate with these questions. The sooner this is over, the better it will be for everyone, especially you and your staff. You'll most likely be able to resume your regular operations, and your regular work schedules,"

That tactic seemed to work, Chloe recognized the change in the plant manager's stance, indicating he was ready to be more open with her.

"It's just that…well, we tested those climate systems for months before they went online. There were redundancies, monitors and fail-safes at every possible weak point. If those systems failed to the degree necessary to cause that explosion, we would have been getting faulty temperature readings days ahead of it."

"And you received none of those warnings?"

"No, miss. So, it's like I said, it's possible that the climate controls malfunctioned, but I'm not sure how likely it is."

"Have you shared these thoughts with anyone else? Your supervisors, perhaps?" asked Chloe.

Mr. Lui shook his head. "No, they seemed pretty content with the arson report. I don't know Mr. Luthor all that well but Mr. Fox and Mr. Wayne have been good to me and this team. They've never given me reason not to trust their judgment. Besides, if it wasn't the climate controls, what else could it be? Even the bots themselves don't house enough power to do all this." He gestured around them at the charred remains of the plant.

Chloe nodded and decided to try anther route. "Did anything unusual happen at the plant in the weeks before the explosion?"

"Unusual how?"

"Employees leaving on bad terms, being passed over for promotions, fighting, that kind of thing. Anything that might suggest sabotage?"

"Sabotage?" croaked Mr. Lui. "No, not this crew. I've known most of them for years since we were all together on the Wayne Tech side. They're real team players. It's not possible."

"Anything's possible, sir. I learned that a long time ago," replied Chloe vaguely. She capped the pen that she had been writing with, sensing that she had gotten all she needed from the plant manager.

"I guess, but this crew was still thrilled over the elimination of the third shift. They didn't have anything to be disgruntled about."

Chloe blinked. "Third shift? I thought this plant didn't  _have_  a third shift. That's why it was empty when the explosion happened."

"It didn't, not anymore anyway. We added a third shift right before we went public with the bots, anticipating demand and all that. Cut it back about a week before the explosion. Good thing, too. If we hadn't, there would have been at least a hundred people in this place when it went up."

Chloe felt the familiar tightening in her belly, the one she felt each time she found the right direction in a case. There it was, whether she wanted it to be or not.

"Whose decision was it to cut the third shift?" she asked.

Mr. Lui adjusted his hard hat and squinted as he tried to recall. "Ahhh…I think it was…yeah, that's right…It was Mr. Wayne. Sent the email himself as a matter a fact. Even made it effective immediately. I had to call the crew that was scheduled to come in that night and tell them to go back to bed." He laughed at the memory.

'Did he give a reason for the decision?"

"No, not that I recall. But he's the boss, after all, one of them anyway, he doesn't really need a reason, I guess."

End chapter


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